How did you get involved with this film? 

GB: The book before it came out as a book was sent to me about 6-7 years ago, but I had just done two films back to back and I was burnt out, so I tossed it in my closet. Then through the years people would say that I had to read this book, it’s great. Then about two years ago I was sitting on set with a friend of mine and she was about to go in to audition for the movie and I became incredibly jealous because I felt that this was supposed to be my movie, but I hadn’t even read it yet. So I went home that night and read it in one sitting and was so blown away by the book, it just so grabbed me. Lily’s journey was so much like my own and the Boatwright sister, I’d never seen women portrayed like that in a film before and I felt like I had just screwed up my life by giving that up. Then miraculously, two months later I get a call that it had fallen apart at the other studio and it came to Searchlight and this time I went after it and thankfully got it. 

How did you go about getting a cast?  

GB: Dakota was already attached when I came aboard and she was one of the reasons I was going to do it. I saw Man on Fire, I’ve seen everything of she‘s done, but Man on Fire just blew me away. I didn’t think that there was another young actor that could handle this part and so her voice was in my head as I was writing, which was great. We got the first choice for everybody except Alicia, but Latifah, the character August is just iconic and larger than life and that’s Latifah, she’s got this amazing warmth and strength and you guys saw her, I mean I can’t think of anybody else that could have portrayed her. Jennifer Hudson had just come out in “Dreamgirls” when I was doing this and that seemed like a no-brainer. I though that she could really embody that. Sophie Okonedo, there was nobody else, I couldn’t think of anybody else it was, “She has to be it.” The character of May in the wrong hands could have been really bad and could have potentially hurt the film and I felt like I could trust her. It’s funny, when you step back and look, you know, people ask me was it intentional to put three singers in the film, but going in it was about the black actors, I wanted academy award caliber actors all in one movie. For black actors, that hadn’t happened before, so that’s where it started from. Adding Alicia, actually Jennifer is an Oscar winner and Latifah is an actor now. But Alicia came in and Jada was originally supposed to play June and she decided to direct her own movie. So I met with Alicia, but knew I couldn’t give her the part even if she wanted to be in the film. I met with her and she’s just a good person, I really liked her and she was someone I’d like to work with. I went home that day after meeting her and I had just gotten my new Vibe Magazine and I opened it up to this advertisement about reading is fundamental and there was Alicia sitting in a chair holding “The Secret Life of Bees.” You can’t get a bigger sign then that. It was a little ridiculous and so I said she has to be in the movie. Then Jada fell out and trying to get Alicia’s schedule to work was crazy because “As I Am” had just come out and she was supposed to go on tour, yet she wanted it bad enough that she rearranged everything to be in this film. Now I couldn’t picture June any other way. Alicia grabbed hold of the part and made it her own. 

How important is a film like this in today’s society? 

GB: It’s pretty fascinating that when we were shooting this whole Obama thing was going on right in the south, in North Carolina. So it was a great tie between the two, just in talking to the actors. We were filming at a time when people are dying for the right to vote and no one thought it would happen in their lifetime. Now it’s just 40 years later and I’d say a year and a half ago people were saying there could be a black president, but not in my lifetime. One of the themes of the movie is that optimism is courageous and I think this is a great thing to have at this time. It also makes perfect sense for me because I was adopted by a Salvadorian mother and a white father. Growing up, there were obvious differences between us and they were celebrated, it didn’t inhibit us from loving each other, that was a big theme for this movie as well. All these people, Lily, the Boatwright sisters and Rosaleen could come together, despite their differences, especially during that time still find the common ground and love each other. 

How important was that you had a multicultural cast and crew? Not many people know that Tristan is half Dominican, how important was that for you? 

GB: I didn’t know that. (laugh) It’s something you have to fight for as a director. You’ll say that on every movie to your line director, who’s one of the people that hires camera people and the grips and all that. Then you’ll walk on set and say, “what happened?” but it was very important to me, it was one of the things Latifah brought up in our meeting as well. You can’t see the movie like this and not have a diverse crew. We fought really hard and it was completely diverse it was very cool. We had to shoot on Dr. King’s birthday and of course I was having issues with that but then we just look around at the crew and the story that we’re telling and it was kind of like this is his dream, all of us working together. So that was a really great movement for all of us and it was a way to feel really good about what we were doing that day. Then the script itself lent to the diversity as well.